


Old Man's Tunes

by batty4u



Category: The Avengers (2012), The Avengers - All Fandoms
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-31
Updated: 2012-08-31
Packaged: 2017-11-13 06:56:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/500730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/batty4u/pseuds/batty4u
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It had been one of those days whenever everything went wrong. Tony had screwed up, big time. Which meant a big apology. but when he had gone to find Steve to man up and do so, he hadn't expected to find everyone singing in the kitchen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Old Man's Tunes

**Author's Note:**

> Steve's parents were both Irish Immigrants according to Marvel, which makes me happy for a number of reasons, this fic being the result of one of them. The Songs used are "The Wild Rover", "Ramblin Rover", and "The Parting Glass". I didn't write them, they are old Irish songs. 
> 
> I may add to this, we'll see.
> 
> If you have questions let me know.

  


It had been a bad day.

 

A long day, a long, rotten, no good, very bad, day. It was stupid, an easy mission that had become overly complicated because of SHIELD refusing to stop being dicks and get out of the way, and the local police trying to tranq Hulk and Hawkeye almost getting thrown from the Quin-Jet, again. And then of course Bucky had gone missing cause the asshole couldn’t just stay where he was supposed to.

Not that Tony had any right to talk, he never stayed where he was supposed to. He sighed and pressed his forehead into the wet tiles of the shower wall. Everything hurt, he’d been tossed around, up and down, thrown through an office building, into a tank, and various other painful things that had done way too much damage to the suit. And then of course Steve had bitched at him about safety and being reckless and well sorry Captain Asshole if the thought getting in the line of fire to keep your star spangled pompous ass safe seemed better than watching you get fried.

 

But in the end Steve was right, as usual. He’d been reckless and Steve had been scared. They had all been scared.

 

He shut off the water and grabbed for his towel, trying to mull over some sort of makeshift apology in his head. Steve wouldn’t accept  I’m Sorry Blowjobs yet, not if he was still mad. And a round of I ’m sorry angry sex was out of the question because Steve was too busy making sure everyone else was alive.

 

That meant he actually had to apologize properly.

 

Oh god that sounded awful.

 

But with what little dignity he had left and out of love for his stubborn ass captain, Tony dressed and made his way downstairs to talk to Steve, expecting to find him seated in the kitchen with Bucky, Clint and Tasha.

 

As he descended the stairs he heard something that sounded like singing, albeit drunk singing. And if it was drunk singing, then Steve had left already to go to HQ to talk to Fury and probably get Tony’s ass in trouble, or get it out of trouble which was more often the case.

 

Fuck it then, he was just grabbing a beer and heading down to the workshop for the next 48 hours.

 

He hurried down the stairs and turned into the kitchen, skidding to a stop at the door.

 

“What’s going on?”

 

“Stark!” Bucky hollered from where he sat across the table from Steve, several cases of beer, Guinness, Amstel, Sam Adams, scattered on the table between them. Thor leaned against the far counter, his large pint filled with what looked like his own ale. Pepper, of all people, was nestled next to Steve, leaning into him with a smile, giggling into her beer bottle. Tasha was seated on Bucky’s lap, Bruce and Clint wedged together at the other end of the table. Janet and Hank were curled on the couch, being cute or some shit while watching TV, a case of beer on the coffee table in front of them.

 

“Bout fucking time you showed up,” Bucky said, laughing. “Barton and I were going to drink your share.”

 

“Were you all singing?” Tony asked, glancing from Steve, to Pepper who started laughing, what was she even doing here, to Thor who was hiding a smile behind his mug, to Clint who was giggling into Bruce’s shoulder.

 

“Yes,” Steve smiled up at him. Tony knew damn well that Steve couldn’t get drunk, believe you me Tony had tried to get the man drunk and had failed on epic proportions. But the way was he reclined in his chair, shoulders loose, a content smile on his face, were all familiar signs of what Tony referred to as Buzzed. Maybe it was just being around others who were drunk, but Steve was a lot more relaxed than he had been initially. “Yes, Tony we were singing. Care to join us?”

 

“Are you feeling alright?” He sat down and grabbed a beer. “Are you all feeling alright?”

 

“Oh calm your tits Tony,” Clint giggled. “Today was shit, what else did you want us to do? Talk about our feelings?”

 

“Drinking sounds better,” Tasha said.

 

“Doesn’t it?”

 

“It does,” Steve nodded and finished his second beer. “Says the man who can’t get wasted.”

 

“Which sucks beyond belief,” Bucky cackled.

 

“They were singing drinking songs,” Pepper explained, sitting up with a stretch. “Cap here has a lovely brogue.”

 

“No I don’t.”

 

“The hell you don’t,” she snapped. “You sounded like one of those stupid Irish tenors or something.”

 

Tony arched an eyebrow. “And what secrets have you been keeping, oh captain?”

  
Steve just shrugged and grabbed for another guinness. “I grew up around Irish Immigrants, what did you expect?”   
  
“You used to sing with the Commandos,” Bucky said. “We both did, fun as hell.”   
  
“And by singing he means drunken cadences and off key bar hall songs.”   
  
“Same thing to the dames and the drunks.”   
  
“So let me hear it,” Tony said, leaning back in his chair. “I mean how bad could it be?”   
  
Steve shook his head. “Nah, I should probably be getting to-”   
  
“No! Don’t you dare, Rogers, we shall not utter that blasphemous name in this kitchen,” Tasha snapped, slamming her beer down onto the table. “Rules are rules.”   
  
Tony glanced at Pepper. “Who?” he mouthed.   
  
“Fury.” She mouthed back.   
  
“I saw that Potts.” Pepper just smiled.   
  
“Come then,” Thor said, refilling his pint. “Another song? You shouldn’t leave the celebration Captain, it’s bad form.” but he was grinning, teasing Steve over the rim of his drink.   
  
“Oh alright. Bucky pick a song.” Steve sighed. “Nothing about sex or I’m leaving.”   
  
“You are no fun at all.”   
  
“Wild Rover,” Bruce murmured. “They sang that one in college...”    
  
Bucky flashed Steve a smile. “Oh you sure as hell know that one.”   
  
Steve chuckled and cleared his throat. Tony closed his eyes and prepared for something short of humiliating and hilarious that he could use against Steve later.   
  


“And it’s no, nay, never,” Steve crooned in a deep tenor, his voice rumbling out of his chest. “No nay never no more. Will I play the Wild Rover, no never no more.”

  
  


Tony sat up and stared at him.

 

“I’ve been a wild rover for many a year,” Bucky chimed in, Tasha chuckling as he tried too hard to hit the low Irish brogue. “I spent all me money on whiskey and beer.”

 

“And now I’m returning with gold in great store, I never will play the wild Rover no more.” Steve even lifted his bottle in mock salute.

 

“And it’s no nay never-”

 

Clint and Pepper clapped the needed rhythm, laughing as they did.

 

“No nay never no more. Will I play the wild rover, no never no more.”

 

Shock didn’t even begin to cover it. Aroused fit in there somewhere too. Enthralled was probably the best word. Tony stared at Steve as he and Bucky, and Clint eventually, and even Bruce continued the song, Hank throwing in a line from the couch. Ok so it wasn’t a big deal and Tony shouldn’t feel cheated, but he did. This was a whole part of Steve, a whole attractive part of Steve, that he didn’t know about. For less shallow reasons, it was something that was part of Old Steve, the scrappy kid from Brooklyn, who was hidden under the soldier facade. And of course the song was over before he’d even realized it and another round of beer was being handed out.

 

“What that was it?” he stammered. 

 

“That’s the song,” Steve said with and chuckle. “Sorry I’m pretty awful at it.”

 

“That’s not an Irish Brogue or a song and if you aren’t speaking either then don’t speak.”

 

“Told you Stark would get a boner from the accent,” Bucky said grinning before taking a swig of beer.

 

“I do not have a boner for it, I need blackmail material.” Tony settled back into his chair. “Let’s go Rogers, more singing less doe eyed stares.” He figured with his luck, Steve would just punch him, or throw beer on him, then storm out and go see Fury like a good soldier would.

 

Instead, Steve took a deep breathe. “Oh there’s sober men a plenty, and drunkards barely twenty. There’s men well over ninety who’ve never yet kissed a girl.” To which Bucky howled with laughter and Tasha elbowed him. “Give me a rambling rover, from Agny unto Dover, and we’ll roam the country over and together we’ll face the world.”

 

“I don’t think it’s from Agny,” Bucky muttered.

 

“Did I ask yea?” Steve shot him a look, never dropping the brogue as he continued. 

 

“Frea Orkney,” Jarvis supplied from overhead.

 

“Told you.”

 

“Shut up, Buck.”

 

“That isn’t singing,” Tony snapped.

 

“There's many that feign enjoyment, from merciless employment. Their ambition was this deployment, from the minute they left the school,” Steve continued with a bark of laughter. “And they save and scrape and ponder, while the rest go out and squander, see the world and rove and wander and are happier as a rule.”

 

“Oh there’s sober men a plenty,” Bruce offered raising his bottle, Birch Beer label plain as day, Clint laughing into his shoulder.

 

“And Drunkards barely twenty,” Pepper sang off key, saluting Tony.

 

“Hey!”

 

“And Men well over Ninety who’ve never yet kissed a girl,” Bucky shouted.

 

“But give me a rambling rover, frae orkney down to dover, we will roam the country over and together we’ll face the world.”

 

Back in college, Tony had never gone to a casual party, where people sat around talking and drinking and eventually singing. Bruce had told him about a couple, said they made you feel at home. And sitting there, Steve leading them in another verse, Pepper’s face flushed, Tasha laughing into the table, Bucky waving his bottle, Thor’s booming voice almost overshadowing them all, it really did, for the first time in a long time, feel like home.

 

“Lemme try,” Tony cleared his throat. “Oh there’s sober men a plenty.” his voice wasn’t near as impressive as Steve’s tenor, he could pull off sinatra rather well, but the old drinking songs were tough.

 

“And drunkards barely twenty!”

 

“And men well over ninety that have never yet kissed a girl,” Tony had to laugh at the look on Steve’s face, torn between fondness and amusement and something that may have been humiliation, Tony couldn’t be sure. He made to sing the next line, but he gulped too much beer and started to cough instead, Bucky and Clint laughing as Pepper giggled so hard tears welled up in her eyes. 

 

“But give me a rambling rover, from frea orkney down to dover, we’ll roam the country over and together we’ll face the world,” Steve finished for him, with a bow of his head for effect as he drew out the last few notes, voice soft and deep. It made Tony think of a cello or a Bass, smooth, melodic, and so different from what he was used to.

 

“Sing something sad,” Tasha mused, grabbing for another beer. “The irish have a lot of sad songs.”

 

“Yeah, that’d be good,” Bruce concurred.

 

“Something about comrades,” Thor offered. 

 

“If someone cries I get fifty bucks,” Bucky bet.

 

Tony kept his eyes on Steve, watched as he shifted in his seat, trying to think, fingers tapping lightly on the table. He watched his chest rise and fall in a steady rhythm, eyes scanning an invisible page for the needed words. 

 

“Of all the money, that ‘ere I had, I spent it in good company,” he sang softly. 

 

Bucky sat up, eyes wide, hand gripping his beer bottle tightly. “Stevie-”

 

“And all the harm that ‘ere I’ve done, alas it was to none but me.  And all I've done for want of wit, to mem'ry now I can't recall. So fill to me the parting glass, goodnight and joy be with you all.”

 

He took another breath and closed his eyes, the room silent and rapt. “ So fill to me the parting glass and drink a health whate'er befalls. Then gently rise and softly call "Good night and joy be to you all".

 

The silence grew eerie. It was sad, just as Tasha had asked for, but ghosts clung to it. Tony could see it in the slight twitch of Steve’s fingers, the way Bucky’s eyes darkened, the weight that settled firmly on their shoulders. And it was in the slow dragging breath that filled Steve’s lungs.

 

“Of all the comrades that ‘ere I had, they’re sorry for my going away,” Bucky offered, voice low and lonely. “And of all the sweethearts that ‘ere I had,” he pulled Tasha closer to him. “They wish me one more day to stay.”

 

“ But since it falls unto my lot, that I should rise and you should not, I gently rise and softly call, Good night and joy be with you all.” Their voices fit together seamlessly, Bucky no longer trying to force the accent, their low voices lingering in the air, Steve’s eyes closing. Tony suddenly felt out of place, a stranger, as if he stood opposite a screen and couldn’t connect, couldn’t touch, wasn’t allowed, wasn’t wanted. It scared him, like Steve was drifting away, back to Bucky, the Commandos, and Peggy.

 

“ If I had money enough to spend, and leisure time to sit awhile. There is a fair maid in this town, that sorely has my heart beguiled.” Steve managed a weak smile as Pepper curled around his arm, eyes damp. Bruce was snuggled against Clint, eyes closed as he listened. Thor came and sat next to Tony, resting his chin on his shoulder. Tony could see Janet and Hank listening from the couch.

“ Her rosy cheeks and ruby lips, I own she has my heart in thrall. Then fill to me the parting glass. Good night and joy be with you all.

 

A moment of untouched silence. Tony took a breath and Pepper lifted her head. Bucky smiled into Tasha’s shoulder as she straightened, lengthening her diaphragm, Clint and Bruce uncurled from each other and Thor set down his pint. Steve remained silent and still.

 

“So fill to me the parting glass,” Tony hummed.

 

“And drink a health what’ere befall. “ He smiled when Bucky joined him, Bruce and Clint softly singing along.

 

“I gently rise and softly call-” Pepper and Tasha’s voice melted with theirs.

 

“Goodnight, and joy be with you all,” Thor’s low rumble sounded by Tony’s ear.

 

Steve nodded. “Goodnight and joy be with you all.”

 

The heavy silence returned.

 


End file.
